My Infinite Cultivation System-Chapter 54: Everyone finished their trial

Alex approached Julius, weaving through the lingering knots of tension that always seemed to follow the Alliance’s upper echelon.

The others hadn’t emerged from the Trial Gate yet, leaving a rare pocket of silence in the cavernous hall.

Alex took his place beside the President, his gaze fixed on the swirling energy of the portal.

"Got your wish fulfilled?" Julius asked.

There was a genuine warmth in the man’s curiosity, though his eyes never stopped scanning the room for potential threats.

"Yes," Alex nodded, a faint, satisfied smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "More than I expected, actually."

Alex leaned in slightly, his voice dropping to a low level,

"President, I want to share some secrets with you."

The atmosphere shifted instantly.

Julius didn’t hesitate; he didn’t even ask for clarification.

With a sharp flick of his wrist, a dense, shimmering energy barrier snapped into existence around them, muffling the world and distorting the light from the outside.

The sudden silence inside the bubble was absolute.

"Now you can speak," Julius said, his expression turning stone-cold serious.

"I appreciate the privacy. Maybe you already know I have Space Manipulation, Gravity Manipulation, and Existential Nullity as my primary talents. But that isn’t the full picture. I have Flame Manipulation and Light Manipulation as well."

Alex didn’t wait for a reaction.

He raised both hands simultaneously.

In his left palm, a sphere of violet-tinged fire erupted, swirling with a heat so intense it began to warp the air inside the barrier.

In his right hand, he conjured a ball of concentrated light energy, white and blinding, pulsing with the frequency of a miniature star.

Julius stared at the two manifestations.

His eyes widened, his jaw tightening as he looked from one hand to the other.

For a moment, the weight of the presidency fell away, and he looked exactly like a child seeing a helicopter for the first time—pure, unadulterated awe.

"Hah... hahahaha!" Julius let out a sudden, boisterous laugh, the sound echoing off the inner walls of the energy dome.

"Fantastic! Simply fantastic. Alex, you’re a walking miracle. Can I share this with the Vice President and your master? They need a reason to hope, and this is certainly it."

"You can," Alex replied calmly, extinguishing the flames and light with a simple thought.

"The reason I’m telling you now is that I need access to top-class skills for these talents."

Julius smiled, though it was a bittersweet expression.

"All the skills and techniques of the Alliance are now free for everyone, Alex. We are currently facing an existential crisis. If we don’t survive the next few months, these manuals are just scrap paper. Putting restrictions on knowledge wouldn’t bring any benefits to a dying race. You’ll have the highest clearance."

Alex nodded, though his mind was already pivoting toward the greater threat.

"Very well then. Is there any news about the Dragons? Have they moved?"

Julius’s face clouded over, the excitement from moments ago vanishing like smoke.

"About that... the Dragons are not there alone anymore. Our long-range recon has spotted other humanoid creatures among them. Different races, different energies. They aren’t attacking yet; they are all just waiting there quietly, as if they’re waiting for a signal. Or a meal to ripen."

"Is that so?" Alex muttered.

He stared at the floor, his mind racing through the implications.

If multiple races were congregating, it wasn’t just a territory dispute; it was a coordinated siege.

"Why aren’t you guys breaking through to the next realm?" Alex finally asked the question that had been gnawing at him.

He had seen the sheer power of the Dragon General’s Planetary Realm, yet the strongest humans were still stuck at the peak of the Martial Emperor realm.

Julius let out a weary, wry smile.

"To break through, we must comprehend a Law. But this Light Domain we live in... it’s a double-edged sword. While it protects us from the miasma, it also suppresses Law comprehension. It’s like trying to listen to a whisper in a thunderstorm.

When we go out to hunt, the restriction lifts, and we can feel the Laws of the universe clearly. But we never had the luxury to cultivate out there. The miasma would rot our cores before we could finish a meditation session. Now, with the other races occupying the outer zones, we’re trapped."

"We really are just guinea pigs in a cage, aren’t we?" Alex said, his voice laced with a cold frustration.

Alex looked toward the door.

The rest of the group began to spill out, their faces were full of smiles.

Anna was the first to spot them.

She didn’t just walk; she sprinted toward Alex, her eyes sparkling with a light he hadn’t seen before.

"Alex! I did it! I got a Legendary potential rating and my talent upgraded two time!" she cried out, skidding to a halt in front of him.

Alex smiled, his eyes automatically performing a scan.

[Name: Anna Celestus]

[Talent: Gravity Sovereign(Epic)]

[Rank: Martial Warrior Level 9]

[Note: Her control has reached a new height. She can now increase gravity up to 5000 times within her domain. She can use gravity on other elements too.]

"Congratulations, Anna," he said softly.

She looked so genuinely happy, her face flushed and her expression so adorable that Alex found himself reaching out without thinking.

He pinched her soft cheek gently, giving it a playful tug.

As he touched her, a familiar hum resonated in his mind. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

The system acknowledged the contact, and the Gravity Sovereign talent was copied and integrated.

It didn’t take up a new slot; instead, it merged with his existing gravity talent, refining the pathways and upgrading his own power to the Epic tier instantly.

Suddenly, he noticed the silence.

Anna had turned a shade of red that rivaled a ripe tomato.

Her eyes were wide, and he could almost swear he saw literal steam curling from the top of her head.

She was frozen in place, her breath hitched in her throat.

Alex realized he was still holding her cheek.

He snatched his hand back as if he’d been burned, his own face heating up.

"Cough! I... I’m sorry. I got carried away."

"Bro, you are such a horndog," a voice drawled from behind them.

Darion walked up, his arms crossed over his chest and a look of mock disdain on his face.

"How can you touch the cheek of an unmarried maiden so casually? Where is your shame?"

Alex rolled his eyes, quickly pulling up Darion’s status to deflect the embarrassment.

[Name: Darion Celestus]

[Talent: Illusion (X)]

[Rank: Grandmaster Level 7]

[Note: His spirit power has undergone a qualitative change. He can now manipulate the nervous systems of beings a full major realm higher than himself. His illusions are now 90% indistinguishable from reality.]

The jump was staggering.

An ’X’ rank talent meant Darion was now a terrifying force on the battlefield.

"Brother Darion, quit the teasing. What rank did you get?" Alex asked, successfully changing the subject.

"Hmph! Legendary rank, obviously," Darion said, though he couldn’t quite hide the smug pride in his voice.

"The spirits know talent when they see it."

"Congratulations. That’s a massive boost for the Alliance."

Next, Alex saw his mother, Elizabeth, exiting the tower.

She looked taller, somehow—more composed, as if the very air around her was turning to frost.

[Name: Elizabeth Aurelion]

[Talent: Ice Manipulation (SSS)]

[Rank: Level 9 Martial King]

[Note: She received an Epic rank potential. This was influenced by the lingering traces of your aura within her bloodline.]

"Wow, they did some nepotism? I like it," Alex whispered to himself.

"Mom, how was it?" he asked as she approached.

Elizabeth looked at her hands, then at Alex.

She seemed lost in thought, a bit overwhelmed by the sudden influx of power.

"I’ll tell you later, Alex. It was... intense. I don’t quite understand why the trial was so generous to me."

Alex stepped forward and gave her a firm hug.

As he hugged her, he completed the copy for Ice Manipulation.

He had been looking for a high-level ice talent for a while, and now he finally had the SSS-rank version.

He looked around the room, searching for Nolan and Selena.

They had finished their procedures earlier, and Alex was eager to see if Nolan’s Alchemy talent had reached the new tier.